This invention relates generally to communications systems, and more particularly to a method and system for remote management of equipment having duplicate network addresses.
With the move toward decentralized processing, users have interconnected workstations, computers and other types of local equipment through local area networks (LANs). More recently, as users move toward global communications that allow equipment to appear as if it were attached to the local area network, local area networks have been interconnected through wide area networks (WANs).
Due to the success of the Internet, the Internet Protocol (IP) has become the primary networking protocol. To make routing efficient, the Internet Protocol uses addresses that include a network portion and a host portion. Internet Protocol addresses are assigned to the interconnection of a host to a physical network.
Independent assignment by each user of Internet Protocol addresses to its own equipment has lead to duplication of Internet Protocol addresses between users. As a result, while a user may access its equipment over an intranet or other closed network using an independently assigned Internet Protocol address, the user cannot rely on that Internet Protocol address to access the equipment over the Internet or other open network. For this reason, a service provider cannot provide remote services for globally distributed equipment belonging to various users.
In accordance with the present invention, a remote management method and system are provided that substantially eliminate or reduce disadvantages or problems associated with previously developed systems and methods. In particular, the present invention provides a remote management system and method that individually accesses equipment having duplicate network addresses.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a communications system for remotely managing equipment includes a first remote device and a second remote device having the same network address. A communications network includes a first link connecting the first remote device to a management station and a second, disparate link connecting the second remote device to the management station. The management station is operable to individually access the first remote device via the first link and to individually access the second remote device via the second link.
More specifically, in accordance with a particular embodiment of the present invention, the network address is an Internet Protocol (IP) address. The communications network is a frame relay network, and the first and second links are each an embedded channel, such as a private virtual channel (PVC) of a network trunk.
Technical advantages of the present invention include providing a remote management system for equipment having duplicate network addresses. In particular, remote devices are separately linked through an open network to a management station. This is accomplished by linking each remote device to a separate input of a switch. The management station is operable to access the remote devices based on addresses associated with the switch inputs. In this way, service providers may remotely access and service equipment over an open network without the cost of maintaining the network addresses as unique.
Other technical advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions, and claims.